The first glimpse into an alternative America where magic has a place... through the eyes of a little boy with unknown talents. It's heartfelt, honestThe first glimpse into an alternative America where magic has a place... through the eyes of a little boy with unknown talents. It's heartfelt, honest, and written in a homely way about homely people. Card writes essentially moral fantasy, and I really identify with that. He inspires us to be better humans than we are. This is up there with Ender's Game, where all of Card's other work, to me, falls short....more

Amazing story. I love the native americans here. They are powerful (as they were) and they ultimately retain their dignity in a way I can only wish haAmazing story. I love the native americans here. They are powerful (as they were) and they ultimately retain their dignity in a way I can only wish had really occurred. Again, the alternate view of history is fascinating and we're watching Alvin grow up and learn to use his "makering" skills....more

The world is still pretty black and white here, Alvin is still seeking knowledge... the series is becoming less compelling. Maybe adults just aren't aThe world is still pretty black and white here, Alvin is still seeking knowledge... the series is becoming less compelling. Maybe adults just aren't as beautiful as children to read about....more

The story is still going strong here. Alvin is all growed up and Peggy Larner's character really gets developed here. Their relationship is pretty comThe story is still going strong here. Alvin is all growed up and Peggy Larner's character really gets developed here. Their relationship is pretty compelling, although it still has a way to go. Alvin has really learned how to maker, in a material sense. The writing is still wonderfully homey and comfortable. It really feels like we're in colonial America. Here we also get to meet and fall in love with Arthur Stuart, the little half-white slave child conceived in evil but raised with love....more

This was a delightful story! I kind of had a hard time getting into it at first. MK Hobson has a definite style, I needed to get accustomed. There isThis was a delightful story! I kind of had a hard time getting into it at first. MK Hobson has a definite style, I needed to get accustomed. There is a very enjoyable tongue in cheek element to her narratorship that once I adjusted to, I quite liked. Not sure how to categorize this story, and in this case that is a really good thing!

Emily is a backwoods witch with a mysterious past (even to her) who is really just trying to survive in any way she can. She casts a disaster of a love spell and ends up dashing off to a deserted mine to save the town from zombies, with the help of a traveling Warlock who'd come to pester her (in her mind). A mysterious stone gets magically embedded in her hand during the zombie-thrashing action, and a madcap adventure ensues... she and the Warlock (Stanton, first name Dreadnought!) have to race across the country to find a way to remove the stone/fix her hand, along the way encountering many strange and wonderful things, all experienced somewhat from Emily's sheltered, yet courageous perspective. Ultimately every person with any magical interest at all - ranging from not so terribly evil to downright evil - is trying to get that stone from her, over her dead body if necessary.

Oh, and of course, she and Stanton fall in love. Which is handled really nicely, like much else in the book, somewhat brusquely but affectionately. I guess what I like about the book the most is the worldbuilding, and the obvious affection MK Hobson has for the world she's built; she has lavished a great deal of care in the details of her world, and this is evident in her tone as well. This is a historical America, with Emily in a backwoods pioneer California community, but it has a definite steampunk element. The government employs Warlocks in its Army, there are multiple societies of magic we are introduced to in this book that have interesting political byplay. I can see lots of potential here for future works in this world.

There are 3 ways of doing magic in this universe: Animancy (natural magic, using the energy of living things), Sangimancy (blood magic, drawing not only from blood but also pain and scary), and Credomancy (magic of belief). This is really a neat system of magic! Especially that last - which is not entirely original but nevertheless it's intuitive and has strength for that. The idea that if people believe something to be true, it becomes true - well that is actually a fact and it's interesting to see a practice of it as "magic". We encounter practitioners of all these magical trades, and lines blur quite satisfyingly between what is evil and what is good. Lots of room for continued growth here as well.

Finally, there is a strong environmental theme in this book, interestingly enough. The world's magic is drawn from an essential lifeforce that resides in a mineral, and is being polluted by misuse of magic. This pollution creates Aberrancies - magical mutations of living beings, basically horror shows that have to be put down. This lifeforce is sentient and is trying to resolve the situation - by way of Emily and Stanton. This was a really nice overarching theme that tied into the worldbuilding and the character developments in a unified way.

In general, I am super impressed with this as a first novel. It was highly enjoyable on many levels and held lots of surprises. Can't wait to see where she goes next. There are some obvious tie-ins to a second novel (perhaps more), and an Epilogue that pretty much sets it up....more

Peggy travels to Camelot (Charleston) to meet the King and take on the whole practice of slavery. It's still interesting but it's lost some of its dirPeggy travels to Camelot (Charleston) to meet the King and take on the whole practice of slavery. It's still interesting but it's lost some of its direction. The use of magic in colonial America is still pretty awesome though. Oh, for what could have been... sigh!...more